Hoboken sends 'welcoming' sign to immigrants in first act of new mayor

HOBOKEN -- Ravi Bhalla's first action after becoming Hoboken's mayor today was to sign an executive order designating Mile Square City as "fair and welcoming," an order Bhalla said sends an "unmistakable message" that the city is friendly to immigrants of all stripes.

The 12-page order, a direct shot at President Trump's administration, says no city employee can ask any individual about their citizenship or immigration status; bars federal immigration agents from accessing municipal facilities or databases; establishes a Fair and Welcoming City Commission that will focus on immigrant issues; and more.

"The Hoboken we know and love was built by immigrants and today is sustained by immigrants," Bhalla, 43, said in a statement. "This first executive order is a reflection of our quintessential American values and sends an unmistakable message that Hoboken is a place that welcomes all who are ready, willing and able to contribute to our great city."

The order also requires the city to keep track of records related to immigration-related requests made by federal officials, including the number of immigration detainer requests or administrative warrants received by Hoboken.

Bhalla signed the order today surrounded by local officials, including Hoboken Police Chief Ken Ferrante, who will issue a police directive to implement the policies set forth in the order.

Amol Sinha, executive director of the New Jersey chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, told The Jersey Journal it is "extremely significant" that Bhalla's executive order is his first action as mayor.

"It allows Hoboken to live up to its potential of being a truly welcoming city," Sinha said.

Trump has criticized cities that offer to shield immigrant residents from federal immigrant officials, most recently in a December radio address citing the killing of a woman shot to death in San Francisco pier in 2015. An undocumented immigrant charged in the case was acquitted of murder and manslaughter on Nov. 30.

"Yet one more reason Americans are so upset by sanctuary cities and open border politicians who shield criminal aliens from federal law enforcement and all of the problems involved with the whole concept of a sanctuary city," Trump said. "They're no good."